Former ANT-MAN Director Edgar Wright Reveals He Recently Reached Out To Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige

Edgar Wright was once set to write and direct Ant-Man, and after parting ways with Marvel over "creative differences," he recently reached out to Kevin Feige for the first time since leaving the movie...

By JoshWilding - Feb 03, 2021 02:02 AM EST

Filed Under: Ant-Man

Hot Fuzz and Baby Driver writer and director Edgar Wright recently worked with Empire Magazine to compile a greatest moments from the theatrical experience feature. Why? Well, to promote the big screen at a time when heading to your local theater to watch a movie is obviously much easier said than done!

As is so often the case, the magazine recently asked the filmmaker about his time working on Ant-Man, and while he acknowledged that his decision to walk away from the Marvel Studios was a "diplomatic" one, Wright also admitted that he hasn't spoken to Kevin Feige since.

After that conversation, he continued to go through reader submissions for the issue, and realised just how much the Marvel Cinematic Universe resonates with lovers of that theatrical experience. As a result, he reached out to the Marvel Studios President, and detailed how their chat went.

"I thought it would be disingenuous of me to get through this article without mentioning the ‘M’ word once. So I did what I hadn’t done in six years – I emailed Kevin," Wright explains. "It was a nice thing, and Kevin was really touched that I’d reached out to him directly and just said, ‘Hey.'"

"Also it was funny after six years of no contact to email him just saying, ‘Kevin, I need you to write something for me, and I need it tomorrow!’ So it was nice, we basically reconnected over this article and it was very sweet," he continued. "I’m very glad I did it, and I was very happy that his response was so - he was really touched that I had reached out, and I feel what he wrote was great."

Wright added that, "I told him that I read what he’d said about Aliens to James Cameron, which he said was just wild. So it was nice, it’s a nice happy ending to that story."

This is a welcome end to this particular story, especially as Wright left Ant-Man after butting heads with Marvel Studios. When he first joined the project, it was expected to be standalone in nature. However, Feige understandably wanted to bring it further into the MCU, and that meant making changes to Wright's screenplay. With that, the filmmaker decided to move on, and Peyton Reed took over.

Which actors and filmmakers would NEVER work with Marvel
Studios again? Hit the "Next" button below to find out!

10. Alan Taylor (Thor: The Dark World)

Alan Taylor's history with Game of Thrones meant fans were hopeful his Thor sequel might embrace the tone and visuals fans of that Westeros-set series enjoyed.

Instead, he delivered a thoroughly generic film which is considered one of Marvel's worst.

How much of the blame lies at Marvel's door is up for debate, but Taylor publicly disowned James Gunn's Guardians of the Galaxy post-credits stinger at the film's premiere, and later described his "Marvel experience" as "particularly wrenching because I was sort of given absolute freedom while we were shooting, and then in post it turned into a different movie."

The filmmaker would add that "it's something I hope never to repeat and don’t wish upon anybody else." Terminator Genisys was similarly disappointing, though, so this blame game is unconvincing.

9. Mickey Rourke (Whiplash, Iron Man 2)

Iron Man 2 was another disappointing effort from Marvel in its early days, with so much time devoted to setting up The Avengers, Tony Stark was left a supporting character in his own film.

Sam Rockwell's Justin Hammer entertained us, but the villainous Whiplash was hard to endure.

Mickey Rourke claimed he spent months researching the role, even spending time behind bars to get into his character's mindset. Arguing that what ended up on screen was one-dimensional because most of his performance was cut, Rourke exclaimed that, "If they want to make mindless comic book movies, then I don’t want to be a part of that."

Did Marvel really cut his role down? If what ended up in the film was the best of it, we'd hate to see the worst because Whiplash was a real lowlight.

8. Edgar Wright (Ant-Man)

Long before the MCU was an interconnected world of stories, the odd scene here or there linking these films was enough for Marvel Studios.

As time passed, that changed, and unfortunately for filmmaker Edgar Wright, that meant making some changes to his Ant-Man screenplay. Kevin Feige brought writers in to connect the film to the rest of the MCU, and that didn't sit well with him. In what he's since called a "heartbreaking" decision, Wright left the project.

"They wanted to do a draft without me, and having written all my other movies, that’s a tough thing to move forward thinking if I do one of these movies I would like to be the writer-director. Suddenly becoming a director for hire on it, you’re sort of less emotionally invested and you start to wonder why you’re there."

If you work for Marvel, you are, in fact, a "director for hire," as you're being invited to play in the MCU sandbox. Sadly, that makes it unlikely Wright will return.

7. Hugo Weaving (Red Skull, Captain America: The First Avenger)

Hugo Weaving is no stranger to blockbuster franchises, but the actor has soured on them enough in recent years to sound downright bitter in the interviews he's so often part of.

After playing the villainous Red Skull in Captain America: The First Avenger, he said in 2012 that "it’s not something I would want to do again." Later, he would reveal that he was asked to reprise the role in the last two Avengers films, but turned the offer down when he could reach an agreement with Marvel Studios on money.

Weaving said he'd have done it, but with Ross Marquand replacing him, don't bank on it.

It would take a lot for Marvel Studios to convince Weaving to return, and given the actor's thoughts on films like this one, the two sides ever reaching an agreement is too much of a stretch.

6. Scott Derrickson (Doctor Strange)

Doctor Strange may have played it safe with the Sorcerer Supreme's origin story, but it was a visual delight, and a film that brought something new to the MCU.

Scott Derrickson was tasked with directing the sequel as well, but those tried and tested "creative differences" meant he left the project early in production. He wanted to deliver the MCU's first horror film, but Kevin Feige wanted to take the title hero into the Marvel Multiverse.

The filmmaker has chosen his words carefully while discussing his departure, but it sounds like there was a real clash of visions when it comes to how the sequel was set to play out.

Now, Sam Raimi is returning to the Marvel world for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, and Derrickson is moving on to other stories (primarily set in the world of horror).

5. Idris Elba (Heimdall, Thor Trilogy, Avengers: Infinity War)

In an interview released shortly after Thor: The Dark World's release, Idris Elba described working on Marvel movies as "torture." It seemed he hated playing Heimdall, and the gruelling reshoots were particularly problematic for the actor.

It seems Kevin Feige took that on board because the Asgardian was given a much larger role in Thor: Ragnarok...only to be killed off in the first few minutes of Avengers: Infinity War!

That had to sting, though the actor has since claimed he would return to the role if the opportunity presented itself.

We're not sure about that one because Elba has already moved on to the DC Universe for The Suicide Squad, and can't have been happy with the way his story ended. Unless he's been promised something big, we're not banking on seeing more of Heimdall in the MCU anytime soon.

4. Ed Norton (Bruce Banner, The Incredible Hulk)

Marvel Studios's earliest, most shocking high-profile falling out with an actor came during The Incredible Hulk's production.

Norton made a series of uncredited changes to the film's screenplay, and was more hands on than the studio probably would have liked. Demanding to be allowed to take part in the editing process as well, Kevin Feige said no, and the actor then refused to do anything to help promote the film.

He left the role shortly after, and Marvel recast him during Comic-Con in 2010 with Mark Ruffalo taking over.

After spending years slating Marvel and The Incredible Hulk, Norton said last year that he would be down with an MCU return. "Maybe as a baddie? Maybe I’ll write my own," he pondered. "I don’t know, I’m open to everything." We doubt it.

3. Joss Whedon (The Avengers, Avengers Age Of Ultron)

Joss Whedon directed two $1 billion blockbuster films for Marvel Studios, but when it came time to find a director for the two-part Infinity War, Joe and Anthony Russo ended up with the job.

There were frequent clashes during the production of Avengers: Age of Ultron, with Whedon forced to shoehorn in the poorly received visions Thor had, and Kevin Feige allowing him to include Captain Marvel...only to then swap her out with Scarlet Witch during post-production!

Whedon has since said that things got "really, really unpleasant" between him and Marvel, and given the negative publicity surrounding Justice League, there's no way he'll return to the MCU.

It's a shame, but not a shock all things considered.

2. Terrence Howard (Rhodey, Iron Man)

Iron Man teased the possibility of Rhodey becoming War Machine, but Terrence Howard never got the chance.

He wanted more money for the sequel, but Marvel Studios turned him down. That decision was reportedly made by Marvel Entertainment CEO Ike Perlmutter, a controversial figure who believed no one would notice if Rhodey was recast...because the character was played by a Black man.

Downey was paid less than Howard for Iron Man, but that changed with the sequel. "It turns out that the person that I helped become Iron Man, when it was time to re-up for the second one, took the money that was supposed to go to me and pushed me out," the actor has alleged.

"They came to me with the second and said ‘Look, we will pay you one-eighth of what we contractually had for you, because we think the second one will be successful with or without you.’" The role was recast, and the sequel was, in fact, a success.

1. Natalie Portman (Returning In Thor: Love And Thunder)

There's one actor who it seemed would never return to the MCU, but is now set to come back to an even bigger role.

Natalie Portman was left fuming when Marvel Studios parted ways with original Thor: The Dark World director Patty Jenkins over creative differences, and only starred in the sequel due to contractual obligations. Avengers: Age of Ultron wrote her out of the MCU, and she was M.I.A. in Thor: Ragnarok.

Meeting with Kevin Feige years later, it appears Portman realised the MCU had changed in her absence, and was convinced to lend her voice to Avengers: Endgame.

In 2022, Jane Foster will transform into the Mighty Thor in Thor: Love and Thunder. Anything can happen in the MCU, so perhaps there's still hope for the others listed here?

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76 Comments

1 2

LSHF - 2/3/2021, 2:45 AM

It can be a good thing to keep relations on a positive note, and not to "burn bridges".

You never know when good things can happen because of this.

Blergh - 2/3/2021, 4:07 AM

@LSHF - goes to show that a positive attitude towards your former employers goes a long way.

LSHF - 2/3/2021, 5:29 AM

@Blergh - You are right.

At least twice in my working lifetime, I left a job (on good terms) due to the then current management (I just didn't tell them that), and was later re-hired when new management was running things.

Doomsday8888 - 2/3/2021, 2:48 AM

Imagine if they announced him as the director of F4 instead of...

Would've been a nice surprise.

SnideCut - 2/3/2021, 2:53 AM

@Doomsday8888 - Jon Watts isn't a bad director in any way dude, cmon now.

bobevanz - 2/3/2021, 2:49 AM

Maybe someday, if Kevin let's him have free reign.

Origame - 2/3/2021, 5:20 AM

@bobevanz - what I don't like about the mcu is that it's just not in a position to give too wild of different tones and themes. They all have to feel like they connect, not just have that fact they connect out there. Sometimes you get people like Gunn and the Russo bros find a way to make their vision work, but for the most part past phase 1 it's not really "this superhero the movie" it's "the mcu movie 500 featuring this hero".

MyCoolYoung - 2/3/2021, 5:44 AM

@Origame - phase 1 and most of 2 had the creative committee. If you can look at all the movies after that and say they had the same theme then I think you’re being disingenuous

Origame - 2/3/2021, 5:50 AM

@MyCoolYoung - the only one being disingenuous is you as I never said they all have the same theme. I said MOST have SIMILAR themes and TONES!

Whaley87 - 2/3/2021, 6:22 AM

@Origame - That's still a disingenuous way of looking at their movies though.

Origame - 2/3/2021, 9:14 AM

@Whaley87 - it's really not.

Blergh - 2/3/2021, 4:07 AM

I always took his departure as Feige being the general director of the MCU and letting directors-for-hire take care of the individual gears in an overall machine controled by Kevin.

Edgar would have been too unique for that it seems.

manofillintent1 - 2/3/2021, 4:16 AM

What did he say about aliens?

Amuro - 2/3/2021, 5:09 AM

Edgar Wright deserved better. I kinda liked Ant-Man but I was still wondering about the movie we could have had with him at the helm.

Still, Peyton Reed did a good job and the cast was great.

Origame - 2/3/2021, 5:23 AM

@Amuro - id say watch baby driver. It's the movie he made right after all this drama and it's about as close to a superhero heist film he's ever done.

Also, if you know much about his style you'd know some of the jokes that are clearly from him, such as the "Luis story" scenes or the toy train moment.

MyCoolYoung - 2/3/2021, 5:46 AM

@Waddles - I’m sure there’s something there with Feige because they hadn’t spoke in years, but there was a creative committee in place at the time

MyCoolYoung - 2/3/2021, 6:09 AM

@Waddles - definitely. I mean he, reportedly, didn't want women or minorities leading the movies. Tells you all you need to know about that guy

LSHF - 2/3/2021, 5:54 PM

@Waddles - Yep. And Kevin not only has to make sure he pleases the majority of the audience (who are NOT comic book readers), but also he needs to please Mickey (The Mouse).

This comes before pleasing comic book fans. He made this very clear many years ago. Comic book fans are their third priority, although he and his team have made far more efforts in the last few years to please the comic book fans than they ever have before.

But, as everyone has seen here, "You can't lease them all!"

LSHF - 2/3/2021, 5:59 PM

@MyCoolYoung - @Waddles - I remember reading (or watching) an interview with Joss after the "Age of Ultron" film and he was constantly having to re-write the script on a daily basis because:

1) to improve it
2) because actors kept wanting changes
3) this useless "creative committee" which was working with comic book stories that were NOT in the same universe had to approve everything.

It was a daily struggle for him.

creative committee

MyCoolYoung - 2/3/2021, 6:15 PM

@LSHF - I remember him speaking about how drained he was after that but I love age of ultron though. After that movie they were disbanded and we got a goat black panther because of it

LSHF - 2/3/2021, 6:29 PM

@MyCoolYoung - I don't allow little things here and there in films to hinder my enjoyment of them (I just ignore them and eventually forget about most of them), SO, I enjoyed "Age of Ultron" a LOT, as it had a LOT going for it. I mean, it was PACKED with one cool scene/moment/performance/special effect/joke/etc. after another.

That omitted "Thor in the Cave" scene was not long, and it still seems weird it was left out because of some bigwig at Marvel Studios felt the film was too long with it. But it would have caused less confusion had the entire scene been left in there.

Now, it seems we don't have that problem anymore, as the newer MCU films seem to be longer (if they need to be). No more going to the outtakes on the Blu-rays/DVDs to see if any of the confusing moments were explained.

Yes, I think I remember reading or hearing Kevin state that they were not (or probably were not) going to get the Black Panther film under Ike.

1 2

Former ANT-MAN Director Edgar Wright Reveals He Recently Reached Out To Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige

Edgar Wright was once set to write and direct Ant-Man, and after parting ways with Marvel over "creative differences," he recently reached out to Kevin Feige for the first time since leaving the movie...

10. Alan Taylor (Thor: The Dark World)

9. Mickey Rourke (Whiplash, Iron Man 2)

8. Edgar Wright (Ant-Man)

7. Hugo Weaving (Red Skull, Captain America: The First Avenger)

6. Scott Derrickson (Doctor Strange)

5. Idris Elba (Heimdall, Thor Trilogy, Avengers: Infinity War)

4. Ed Norton (Bruce Banner, The Incredible Hulk)

3. Joss Whedon (The Avengers, Avengers Age Of Ultron)

2. Terrence Howard (Rhodey, Iron Man)

1. Natalie Portman (Returning In Thor: Love And Thunder)

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